MORNING MESSAGE
In a Populist Moment, Hillary Clinton’s Left-Leaning Economic Vision
Hillary
Clinton gave a speech on the economy in Toledo, Ohio on Monday ... The speech
wasn’t perfect, and some will undoubtedly question her sincerity. But it showed
just how far the candidate, and her party’s leadership, have come in a very
short time ... by reflecting and channeling the public’s anger, Clinton is
acknowledging that the political reality about Wall Street fraud has
changed.
Trump TAXES in Spotlight
Clinton
rips Trump’s tax returns. NYT: “[She said] he pretended to help working
Americans even as he personified ‘the same rigged system he claims he will
change.’ … Mrs. Clinton wove her attack on Mr. Trump into an address in which
she also criticized other corporate actors, including top executives at Wells
Fargo … She also unveiled two new policies to protect workers, including curbing
the use of ‘forced arbitration’ clauses in contracts that prohibit workers and
consumers from bringing legal action against companies that have harmed
them.”
Trump
deems his tax avoidance “brilliant.” Reuters: “‘I was able to use the tax
laws of this country and my business acumen to dig out of the real estate mess …
when few others were able to do what I did,’ Trump told a crowd in Pueblo,
Colorado.”
Trump’s
tax avoidance is small compared to large corporations, notes NYT’s Andrew Ross
Sorkin: “An exhaustive study being released on Tuesday by a group of
researchers shows in detail how Fortune 500 companies have managed to shelter
trillions of dollars in profits offshore from being taxed. Mr. Trump’s efforts
pale by comparison. Worse, the companies have managed to hide many of their tax
havens completely, in many cases reporting different numbers to different
government agencies to obfuscate exactly how they’ve avoided Uncle Sam. And,
yes, it is all legal.”
400 PPM
Atmosphere
crosses 400 parts per million of CO2. NYT: “One of the world’s most
important sentinel sites for measuring levels of carbon dioxide in the
atmosphere, at Mauna Loa, Hawaii, reported that levels had recently risen above
the symbolically important figure of 400 parts per million, and were likely to
stay that way ‘for the indefinite future.’ … rising above 400 parts per million
line makes it even harder to prevent global temperatures from rising beyond the
goal of two degrees Celsius agreed to in Paris … Ralph Keeling, a professor at
Scripps Institution of Oceanography … stressed that the 400 parts per million is
‘a good yardstick,’ but ‘to call it a tipping point is incorrect.'”
Canada
moves on carbon pricing. CBC: “A tough-talking Trudeau told MPs in the House
of Commons that provinces can craft a cap-and-trade system or put a direct price
on carbon pollution — but it must meet the federal benchmark or ‘floor price.’
‘If neither price nor cap and trade is in place by 2018, the government of
Canada will implement a price in that jurisdiction,’ he said.”
European
Parliament backs Paris pact. BBC: “It was approved with 610 votes in favour,
38 against and with 31 abstentions … To become operational, the treaty needs at
least 55 countries representing at least 55% of global emissions to complete all
the steps. ‘With the action taken by the EU parliament, I am confident that we
will be able to cross the 55% threshold very soon, in just a matter of a few
days,” UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said.”
BREAKFAST SIDES
Supreme
Court to hear insider trading case tomorrow. Bloomberg: “…a Chicago grocery
wholesaler [is] trying to overturn his conviction for buying stock based on
information leaked by a relative … It tests whether someone can be sent to
prison for making trades when the insider who provided the tip wasn’t looking to
make any money … A victory for the government would be a boost for prosecutors
and the Securities and Exchange Commission, restoring some of the legal leverage
they lost in 2014 when a federal appeals court in Manhattan set new requirements
for insider-trading convictions.”
Battle
for key House Democratic leadership slot shaping up along ideological lines.
Politico: “Reps. Barbara Lee and Linda Sánchez are squaring off in the race
to become vice chairman of the Democratic Caucus … it could help determine who’s
next in line to run the caucus … ‘Sánchez is a doer, while Lee is an ideologue,’
said a Democratic aide with knowledge of the race. ‘So even though Lee has
progressives … younger members are likely going to be with Sánchez because she’s
at least open-minded.’ … But some members say Lee’s ultraliberal bona fides are
exactly what make her the best candidate. She would be an appropriate foil to
Crowley, the current vice chair who is expected to ascend to Democratic Caucus
chairman, and she’s true to the progressive spirit on which Sen. Bernie Sanders
(I-Vt.) capitalized…”
Progressive
Breakfast is a daily morning email highlighting news stories of interest to
activists. Progressive Breakfast and OurFuture.org are projects of People's
Action. more
»